PARIS (Reuters) – French troops killed 40 militants on the Benin-Burkina Faso border in West Africa’s Sahel region, the French government said on Saturday. The action followed an attack on park rangers in northern Benin on Tuesday in which a French national was among eight people killed. (Reporting by Richard Lough; Editing by Angus MacSwan)
By Christophe Van Der Perre SAMPONA COMMUNE, MADAGASCAR (Reuters) – Standing at the side of a highway in the south of Madagascar, 25-year-old water seller Masy is grateful for the heavy rains that fell last week when Cyclone Batsirai hit. Sampona Commune, where Masy lives with her five children, is in a region that has …
Cyclone Batsirai’s rains bring temporary relief to Madagascan water seller Read More »
CAPE TOWN (Reuters) – The World Health Organization’s Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Friday urged African countries to back efforts to set up an African medicines regulator. Speaking at a news conference in South Africa, Tedros added that continental institutions like the planned African Medicines Agency were important because they could cut costs and help …
WHO’s Tedros urges African countries to back continental drugs regulator Read More »
PARIS (Reuters) – Western foreign ministers will hold crunch talks on their countries’ future presence fighting Islamist militants in Mali on Monday, four European sources said, with three saying regional and international leaders will also meet on Wednesday. The diplomatic flurry precedes an EU-Africa summit on Feb. 17-18 and three weeks of consultations amid deterioration …
Diplomatic flurry as crunch time on Western military role in Mali nears Read More »
KINSHASA (Reuters) – The velodrome in Kinshasa’s Kintambo neigbourhood rang out with howls of disbelief on Friday, as thousands gathered to say farewell to the 25 people killed when a high-voltage power cable snapped last week in Democratic Republic of Congo’s capital. On Feb. 2, lighting struck a power cable during a heavy storm, causing …
Congo bids painful farewell to victims of snapped power cable Read More »
UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) – Deputy U.N. Secretary-General Amina Mohammed said on Friday she was deeply shaken by accounts of rape from Ethiopian women, which she described as “your worst nightmare.” Speaking to reporters in New York a day after returning from Ethiopia, Mohammed said she had been left near tears while hearing what the women …
Deputy U.N. chief left near tears by rape accounts in Ethiopia Read More »
By Lovasoa Rabary ANTANANARIVO (Reuters) -The death toll from Cyclone Batsirai in Madagascar jumped to 120 on Friday from 92 reported earlier this week, the state disaster relief agency said. The cyclone hit the Indian Ocean island late on Saturday, slamming the southeastern coastline before receding late on Sunday. The disaster relief agency said that …
Death toll from Cyclone Batsirai in Madagascar rises to 120 – state agency Read More »
JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) -South Africa’s economic recovery remains fragile and growth is expected to hold below 2% in the medium term because of policy uncertainty, high public debt and constraints to investment, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Friday. In a statement issued at the end of discussions with South Africa, the IMF said the …
South African economic recovery deemed fragile by IMF Read More »
KHARTOUM (Reuters) – Sudan on Friday denounced Western criticism of the arrest of two high-profile former officials opposed to military rule and charged with corruption, saying it was contrary to “diplomatic norms and practices”. Khalid Omer Yousif and Wagdi Salih were arrested on Wednesday, a move Norway, the United States, Britain, the European Union, Canada, …
Sudan rejects Western criticism of arrests as ‘blatant interference’ Read More »
JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – South Africa’s National Treasury said on Friday it was more optimistic than the International Monetary Fund on the medium-term economic growth outlook, after the IMF said it expected a “lacklustre” performance. “The National Treasury acknowledges the difficult juncture South Africa is at,” it said in statement, adding that it believed medium-term growth …
South Africa says more optimistic than IMF on medium-term growth Read More »
